In that moment, Nanxi felt incredibly flustered. Lies had become truth, and instead of being pleased, she felt a tinge of disappointment deep down.
Why did it have to be now?
Why couldn’t it be delayed by just one day, even just one day!
Lu Yinchu came out and saw Nanxi emerging from the bedroom, looking distraught. He furrowed his brow slightly and asked, "What’s the matter?"
Nanxi bit her lip as she felt her heart breaking, "My... my period’s started!"
Lu Yinchu paused, then smirked, "I know, you already told me, didn’t you?"
He then lifted the cup in his hand and said, "I have prepared some brown sugar water for you. Come, drink it."
Upon hearing this, Nanxi felt even more upset. A tear fell, and, taking a few steps, she dashed into Lu Yinchu’s arms and hugged him tightly.
The force of her running into him wasn’t particularly strong, but as it was unexpected, Lu Yinchu’s body shook a little, almost spilling the brown sugar water he held in his hand.
He slightly furrowed his brow at Nanxi, who was sobbing in his arms. Feeling a touch of pity, he patted her back, "What’s wrong? Are you... in a lot of pain?"
Nanxi shook her head. She would rather be in pain than doubt this man who was treating her so well. She felt terrible for always being so suspicious. It was wrong, so very wrong!
"Sweetheart, don’t cry. Drink the brown sugar water first. I heard that it is best to drink it while it’s still hot, it’ll help."
Nanxi bit her lip and nodded. She untangled herself from his arms. Her small nose was red, tears had dampened his white shirt a little. She lifted herself on her tiptoes and planted a quick kiss on his lips, "Lu Yinchu, you’re wonderful!"
The man was clearly taken aback, then smiled, "Silly girl, you’re just realizing it now?"
"No, I realized it before. But now I think you are even better than I initially thought."
Something seemed to hit the man’s heart. He cupped her face and kissed her, Nanxi closed her eyes and responded, their kiss lingering and passionate.
But it didn’t last too long, as he was worried about the brown sugar water in his hand.
Nanxi obediently drank all the brown sugar water, not leaving a drop. As Lu Yinchu was cooking in the kitchen, she wanted to help, but he held her back in the living room, not letting her move.
"Can I go to the kitchen to admire your art?"
Lu Yinchu pondered, "Are you going to film me with a DV camera?"
Nanxi tightened her lips and replied, "Sure!"
"In the study room’s drawer, there’s a DV. You can go get it."
Nanxi was really excited and set off immediately.
Lu Yinchu stood behind, his feelings in turmoil: years ago, he had followed behind her with a DV camera, capturing her from angles she couldn’t see. Today, it was she who was filming him.
Was this some kind of karma?
Nanxi got the DV quite quickly. As Li Weihuan and Zhang Mu also had one, she knew how to use it. However, she felt that Lu Yinchu’s DV was old-fashioned compared to theirs. Nonetheless, it was undeniably high quality.
"Lu Yinchu, I’m starting. Are you ready?"
Holding the DV camera, Nanxi saw Lu Yinchu smiling at her. In that moment, he seemed to see a younger version of himself at twenty-four.
But back then, he never uttered a sentence like, "Nanxi, I’m going to start. Are you ready?"
At night, the two were lying in bed. Nanxi was curled up with lingering pain in her lower belly, but it was better than before.
Her frailties would flare up, especially during the first three days of her period. It could be so unbearable that Nanxi once wished she was never born a woman in her next life.
Lu Yinchu was holding her, his body against her back. It made her feel safe and warm.
Hearing his deep voice in the cool night, she replied,
Nanxi gritted her teeth, "No, it doesn’t."
His voice came with a hint of indulgent anger. Nanxi paused and felt his large hand glide towards her lower abdomen.
As she wanted to stop him, he said, "Let me massage it for you, be good."
Nanxi tightened her lips and remained still. She felt the warmth of his large, calloused hand gently massaging her lower belly, his movements light and extremely cautious.
At that moment, her eyes welled up with tears again. She turned and buried herself in his chest, hugging him.
"What’s wrong? Is the pain unbearable? Should I take you to the hospital?"